Ballot



J, S. BAKER.

BALLOT.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. e, 1919.

1 350, 9 1 4;, Patented Aug. 24, 1920.

41/92 Q/Va dzwoaz a/ I a 811 v0 llrOZ JOHN S. BAKER, OF L OS PATENTOFFICE.

ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

BALLOT.

Application filed'March 6,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN-S. BAKER, a citizen of the United Statesresiding at Los Angeles, in the county of'iios Angeles and State ofCalifornia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inBallots; and I hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, andexact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, which form part of this specification.

This inventionrelates to means for balloting or voting. The object ofthe invention is to obviate the use of voting machines and provide aballot which the average voter can use as readily as he can the presentmarking system and with greater accuracy, so that the voter does nothave to be taught anything as regards the manner of voting with suchballot, and does not have to handle any machinery for registering hisvote.

The invention resides ina novel ballot, which is preliminarily weakenedor par tially perforated in such manner that the voter can readilycomplete the perforation opposite the name of each candidate for whom hedesires to vote, and thereafter such ballot can be easily counted bysuitable machines.

In general appearance the ballot is similar to the ordinarypaperballots, and the novel feature of the invention is a ballot soformed that it must and will be properly perforated when voted and allthe perforations will be accurately located, but the voter can preparehis ballot without any special tools and without using any kind ofmachine or apparatus for locating the perforations; and can punchthe'ballotvwith a lead pencil as readily as hecould mark it with suchpencil.

My'novel ballot is preliminarily weakenedor partially perforated and isadapted for accurate final perforation by the voter without any specialtools,so that the average voter can go into the booth and vote theballot, and all the perforations which he makes therein will be properlylocated and properly sized because of the preliminary weakened orpartial perforations and such ballots'can be. accurately registered andcounted by a suitable machine.

I am' aware that it has been heretofore proposed to have the voter puncha ballot to indicate hiscandidates instead of marking same; but merelypunching the ballot Specification of Letters Patent. Patented A 24 192()1919. Serial No. 280,904.

is not the feature of my invention. The essential feature 'of myinvention being providing an ordinary looking ballot havingpreliminarily weakened or partially perforated portions at the pointswhere the ballot would ordinarily be marked by the voter, so that thevoter instead of marking the ballot opposite candidates for whom hedosires to vote simply completes the perforation.

In the preferred form, the ballot has a disk partly detached therefromopposite each candidates name, and such disk can be readily detached andforced from its place by means of an ordinary lead pencil or pointedstick. Or the preliminary weakening can be formed in the ballot bymaterially thinning the material of the ballot at the points where itmay be punched so that the thinned portion can be readily perforated bya pencil; or in another form, small perforations are made in the ballotat the proper points and can be enlarged by a lead pencil or pointedstick.

In either case the ballot is preliminarily weakened or partiallyperforated in such manner that when the voter completes the perforationsthey will form holes of such size and so exactly positioned in theballot that when such ballot is run through the counting machine itsdetectors will. find the holes and accurately count the votes registeredon the ballot, and improper counting or registration by misplacedperforations will be prevented. It is important that the holes on theballots be accurately located so that the counting machine pins will notstrike the sides of irregularly placed holes; therefore the holes mustbe punched accurately.

My invention does not change the present system of voting at all. Withmy invention when the voter goes to the booth he is given an ordinarylooking ballot, made of cardboard or heavier paper than is usuallyemployed, and instead of stamping a cross on the ballot opposite thename of the candidate for whom he wishes to vote, he simply completesthe forming of the preliminary or partially formed holes in the ballotopposite the names of the candidates for whom he votes with a leadpencil or pointed stick.

vAfter the polling booths are closed such ballots can be counted in amachine.

In the accompanying drawings I have proper counting conventionallyillustrated a ballot embodying the invention and will explain same withreference to the drawings, and summarize in the claims the essentialnovel features forwhich protection is desired.

' In said drawings:

Figure 1 illustrates part of a ballot em bodying the invention, thearrangement of matter on the ballot being'cornmon.

Fig. '2 is a detail section showing the at' present preferred mode offorming partial perforations thereon. I

"Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the perforations completed.

Fig. 4 is a similar section showing another mode of forming theperforations.

Fig. 5 is a similar section indicating another modification of theballot.

The ballot 1 is preferably made either of heavy paper or of cardboard,and of about the size commonly employed, and may have the samesuperficial arrangement of printed I matter as the common ballotsusually employed in voting by the so-called Australian ballot system.

On such ballots the candidates for State, Judicial, Congress, and

School etc., are usually arranged in col- 7 V umns, and a space lsprovded for the name of each candidate, such spaces being 'indi cated at a,and'adgacent each spacea 1s a marking space, indicated at b.

In the preferred form of ballot '(Figs; 23)'rnade in accordance with myinvention,

in each space 6' is a circle, indicated at a,

'and. the portionof the ballot material within the circle 0 ispreferably partly severed from the blank 1 by perforating or otherwise,as. indicated at 2 in the left hand column of Fig. 1, a'nd' in Figs. 2and 3; and when the voter wishes to register a vote'fo'r any candidatehe punches this blank or disk Q FOUt of the ballot with a pencil orother 7 instrument, leaving a hole therein-as indicated in Fig. 3.

Instead of the ballot might be weakened in the spaces "6 by thinning theballots oizpartly punching punched in the circlesc, as indicated at 4 inthe material therefrom as. indicated at 3 in Figs, land 4, leaving theballot imperforate but thinned at the portion?) in each circle 0; suchthin portions can be readily with a pencil by the voter. 1 v I V v V Asshown in Fig. 5 the holes may be Figspl and: 5; each hole 'so'formedbeing closed by a thin sheet of paper 5 preferably appliedto the back-of the ballot, and which papermaybe tinted 'so that it would bereadilydistinguishedby the voter, and this thin papercould befpunched by thevoter inserting a pencilor similar instrument 1nthe opening am theblock?) opposite the name of the candidate for whom he wishes formingthe ballot with par-- tially detached disks27, as in Figs. 2 and 3,.

perforated to vote, and punching the paper covering such opening.

In each case it will be seen that all the ,7 voter has to do is to takehis ballot and instead of marking in the spaces 6, he punches throughthe ballot within the circles 0 in the spaces 6 opposite the names ofthe candidatesfor whom he wishes to vote.

7 The ballots 1 may be provided with registering perforations or notches8 at desired .points, by which the ballots can be alined andproperlypositioned in the counting ma chine, (not shown), so that whenthe ballots are run through such machine, they will be properlypresented beneath the detector pins with which the machineis provided inthe manner well understood, and wherever a" detector finds a hole of'theproper size in the ballotit will cause registration of a 'vote for thecandidate opposite whose name the hole in the ballot appears. 7

In practically utilizing my invention the ballot is preferably preparedby partially perforating or detaching disks at the points to be punched(as in Figs; 2 and 3) so that each diskmay be readily punched outleaving a properly formed hole, and as the ballots are made of stiffpaper or cardboard it would be diflicult'to make a hole any other place.Or instead of partially perforating the ballots as stated,theballotcould be partially punchedybut not wholly perforated,

as in Fig. 4, so as to leave only thin disklike films at the pointswhere the ba'llot should be punched for voting; or the holes might bepreviously. punched in the ballot and then covered by thin paper, as inFig.

. 5, which can be readily punched through by the candidate for whom hedesires to vote;

such holes inthe ballot being properly located and properly sizedwithout any further manipulation; and when such ballots are placed inthecounting machine its detecting pins pass through the holes punched inthe'ballots and would not strike the'sides of the holes *but'passtherethrough and in- 7 sure proper registration of the candidates forwhom the voter has voted. 'fWhat I claimis: f V 1. An electoral ballotdisplaying the names of the candidates thereon and having. a part of theballot adjacent the name of each candidate preliminarily weakened insuch mannerthat the voter ean readily complete the formation of a holeof proper size in the ballot opposite the name of the candidate for whomhe wishes to vote, such preliminarily weakened portions of the ballotbeing so located that the holes completed by the voter will be properlycentered; and the ballot having registering portions whereby any numberof such ballots when voted may be properly counted by a suitablemachine.

2. An electoral ballot displaying the names of the candidates and havingweakened portions adjacent the names 0]": the candidates, to enable avoter to readily make a hole opposite the name of the candidate for whomhe desires to vote by pushing a pencil or pointed instrument through theadjacent preliminarily weakened portion of the ballot; the preliminarilyweakened portions in the ballot being so located that the holescompleted by the voter will be properly centered; and the ballot havingregistering portions whereby any number of such ballots when voted maybe counted by a suitable machine.

3. An electoral ballot bearing the names of the candidates and having anindicating space adjacent the name of each candidate, the material ofthe ballot being preliminarily weakened at such spaces so that the votercan readily punch such spaces to form holes in the ballot opposite thenames oi? the candidates for whom he wishes to vote; such preliminarilyweakened portions in the ballot being so located that the holescompleted by the voter will be properly centered; and the ballot havingregistering portions to enable any number of such ballots when voted tobe properly counted by a suitable machine.

4. An electoral ballot bearing the names of the candidates and having apart of the material of the ballot adjacent the name of each candidatepreliminarily weakened by partially perforating the ballot to enable thevoter to readily punch such weakened portion of the ballot opposite thename of the candidate for whom he wishes to vote; the preliminarilyweakened portions in the ballot being so located that the holescompleted by the voter will be properly centered; and the ballot havingregistering portions to enable any number of such ballots when voted tobe properly counted by a suitable machine.

5. An electoral ballot for the purpose specified bearing the names ofthe candidates and having an indicating space adjacent the name of eachcandidate; the ma terial in the ballot at such spaces beingpreliminarily weakened by partially detaching the portions of materialof the ballot within such spaces from the ballot to enable the voter toreadily punch such portions from the ballot opposite the names of thecandidates for whom he wishes to vote; the preliminarily weakenedportions of the ballot being so located that the holes completed by thevoter will be properly centered; and the ballot having registeringportions to enable any number o1. such ballots when voted to be properlycounted by a suitable machine.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I aflix my signature.

JOHN S. BAKER.

